


Bad First Date

by Leppeh



Series: A Series of Unfortunate Dates [1]
Category: The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Bad dates, F/F, Pre-Mirandy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:35:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22517116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leppeh/pseuds/Leppeh
Summary: What would you do if you're on a bad first date?
Relationships: Miranda Priestly/Andrea Sachs
Series: A Series of Unfortunate Dates [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1699762
Comments: 99
Kudos: 458





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I recently went on a horrible first date, most of what I mentioned below regarding the date happened to me. Minus the Miranda part of course (I wish I had a Miranda).
> 
> All errors are mine and mine alone.
> 
> Disclaimer: Once again I have no rights to DWP, just borrowing the characters. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Andrea Sachs is hating life right now. Silently, she’s praying to all the deities above for a fire alarm to go off or just about anything to save her from this nightmare of a first date. She should have known, when her date had shown up fifteen minutes late, that it was a bad sign and walked away. Yet, here she sits, across from this guy that had checked off several things on her list of must have in a partner, only ten minutes into the date and she was done. The current NFL football game was more entertaining than the date.

Their conversation had started off stilted and it wasn’t flowing as smoothly as it had while they were chatting via text. Her date had spent more time on his two phones than he did talking to her. Then there was his mannerisms that have been raising really big, red flags since he greeted her at the sports bar. That’s the other thing that irritated her, who picks a sports bar as a first date location? Another sign she should have taken seriously, maybe then she wouldn’t be stuck here enduring this first date and trying to find a way out.

_ ‘Well, if he can be on the phone, then so I can. Not like I’ll be the rude one.’ _

Andy pulled her phone out from her purse and starts to send an ‘S.O.S’ text message to Nigel. They had an agreement awhile back that they will be one another’s savior if they were ever stuck in a situation like this. She just hopes that he comes to her rescue quickly.  _ ‘Oh thank god the beer is here!’ _ She nodded her thanks to the waitress then took a big gulp of her beer.

“Do you like watching football?” Her date asked.

**_‘Be there soon.’_ **

She silently sent a ‘thank you’ to the deities above for Nigel’s quick response, before looking across the booth to her date. Giving, what she hopes is a convincing smile, Andy said, “Not really. I’m usually too busy with work to pay attention to the NFL games. You?”

“Same, I prefer playing video games or RPG when I’m not busy with work,” He said. “Do you know The Outer Worlds?”

Andy, barely able to hear him over the sports bar noise, shook her head at whatever question he had asked. Her date smiled then proceeded to explain the RPG game. For the first time that evening, she was glad for the loud conversations around them, it saved her from listening to the explanation of a game that she had no interest in and don’t foresee ever playing. Glancing down at her phone, she noticed that ten minutes have passed since Nigel had texted her. She let out a big sigh as she realized that with New York traffic, it would probably take him at least another ten minutes to get there. God if she hears another ‘Woot woot’ from her date, she might just scream.

“Andrea.”

The low pitch, yet familiar voice reverberated loudly in Andy’s head causing her to turn around hastily to look at the speaker. There Miranda Priestly stood, in all her Prada glory. Her ex-boss. Rendered speechless, she just stood there staring at Miranda, taking her in.

“Uh, excuse me,” her date said. “I’m sorry, but we’re in the middle of a date.”

Andy winced at her date’s misguided act of masculinity in front of Miranda. ‘ _ Oh boy, she’s going to eat him alive.’ _

“Hm yes,” Miranda began, before smirking and said, “Thank you for taking my  **wife** out on  **such** a lovely date, but I am here to bring her home.”

Andy and her date both looked at Miranda in shock, with their eyes widen and mouth agape.

“W-wife?” Her date stuttered out.

Miranda ignored him and looked over at Andy. They started at one another for a few seconds, then Miranda reached out and brushed a stray strand of hair away from her face. “Are you done being mad at me, darling?” Miranda asked softly.

“I… Um…”

“Come, let’s go home. The children are waiting,” Miranda said, while she took Andy’s hand and steered her towards the exit.

As soon as they left the sports bar, Miranda’s grip on Andy’s hand tightened as she pulled her towards the waiting town car. Roy opened the back door for them and Miranda motioned for Andy to go in first before following her inside. They sat in silence as Roy drove away from the sports bar. Andy was confused and torn. She didn’t know how Miranda had appeared at the bar since it’s not a place that Miranda Priestly, the fashion queen, would ever frequent.

“If you wanted a bad first date Andrea, all you had to do was asked me,” Miranda said, breaking the silence.

Andy whipped her head around and stared at Miranda in surprise.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for your wonderful (some threatening) reviews. Since you've all asked so nicely (or threatening), here is the follow up chapter to my oneshot. ;)
> 
> I hope it's what you've all wanted!

Miranda Priestly didn’t think her day could get better after the atrocious day she had to endure and still trying to endure. From the incompetency with her staff, the rained out photoshoot, to the horrid budget meeting with the little, sniveling troll called Irv Ravitz. He’s always trolling  _ Runway _ , making unwarranted pass at the Clackers while finding excuses to cut her budget in half. 

She was already very irritable and at the end of her wits with October’s sorry excuse for a layout when Nigel’s phone went off during their meeting, making her even more displeased. Shooting him one of her deadliest glare, she snapped out, “Am I keeping you from something more important than this layout Nigel?”

She watched as Nigel gulped then glanced down at his phone before looking at her. He ran his hand over his bald head and wiped the sweat at the side of this brow. “Uh, N-no,” Nigel stammered out. “Sorry, it’s just Six sending an S.O.S message to me.”

Hearing the blasted nickname Nigel had given her Andrea, Miranda’s dismal mood perked up for a quick second before she quickly masked it with a bored, uninterested look, realizing that she’s still surrounded by a handful of her senior staff. 

“Oh?” Miranda said in a disinterested tone. 

**‘S.O.S.’**

**‘Operation bail me out NOW! PLEASE! *praying hands emoji*’**

Nigel chuckled at text before looking back up at Miranda. “She’s on a first date with some guy she’s been talking to and apparently it isn’t going too well. Sorry Miranda, I just need to call her real quick to give her an out.”

Miranda pursed her lips and glared at Nigel, causing him to freeze in his seat. “Ah, I guess Six can wait a bit longer.”

She turned her focus back to the rest of her staff and began giving them a list of action items she needed them to handle in order to make the October’s layout look less like a trainwreck that it currently is before dismissing them for the evening. 

“Nigel, stay. Emily, close the door on the way out. That’s all.”

“Yes, Miranda.”

The rest of the staff hurriedly grabbed their belongings and rushed out of Miranda’s office to do her bidding. Meanwhile, Nigel squirmed in his seat, it had been awhile since he’d been on this end of Miranda’s wrath so he’s not sure what Miranda wanted to do with him. She silently stared at him for what felt like hours, seeming to debate with herself, before rising from her desk and walking over to her window. Silence reigned on them, with Miranda staring out at New York’s evening skyline and Nigel staring at Miranda, trying to get a read on her body language. 

“Where is she?” 

Miranda’s question startled Nigel out of his reverie. Confused and a bit lost, he asked, “Excuse me?”

Rolling her eyes while still staring out, she huffed in annoyance and repeated herself, “Where. Is. She?”

Nigel looked at Miranda with a mildly confused look before his eyes widened when it dawned on him what, or more like who she’s asking about. He let out an uncomfortable laugh then said, “She’s at a sports bar called Red Dog Saloon. Apparently, her date had picked it out. Should have been a big hint right there, really.”

Miranda ran her thumb over her lips as she thought about the situation, debating if she should or shouldn’t she. Maybe she should just let it go and let Nigel handle it. Making up her mind, she started to tell Nigel to just go ahead and handle it, only to say something completely different.

“Message her back and tell her you’ll be there soon.”

“Um… I will?”

Miranda turned and glared at him. 

“Right, I will.”

He pulled out his phone and proceed to text Andrea back.  **‘Be there soon.’** Once done, he looked back up at Miranda. “Okay, I’ve sent it. Guess I should head out and rescue her now.”

Miranda waved him off and said, “I’ll do it. Get back to work Nigel. October's issue won’t create itself.”

Eyes widen in surprise, he sputtered out, “Y-You?! Ah, Miranda, are you sure? It’s a loud and rowdy sports bar.”

She pursed her lips and glared.

“Right, of course you’re sue. I’ll get back to work.”

“And Night, don’t even think of warning her,” Miranda said just as he walked out of her office, causing him to pause momentarily.

“I won’t.”

**XXXX**

Sitting in the back of the town car, Miranda starts to question her decision again. What did she expect to come from this little rescue excursion? She hadn’t had any contact with Andrea since the wayward girl had abandoned her a year and four months ago. Sure she had seen the girl at events and on the streets from time to time, but those encounters were at a distance. They never crossed the invisible line that they had somehow mutually agreed upon whenever they came across one another. There was brief eye contact, but that was all it was, a brief eye contact.

The closer they got to the sports bar, the more nervous she got, which was ridiculous. She’s Miranda Priestly, the Editor-in-Chief of  _ Runway _ , she held all the powers. Yet, here she is, palms getting sweaty, butterflies fluttering in her stomach, and the fear of this being a big mistake. As the Red Dog Saloon comes within eyesight, Miranda closed her eyes and went through the meditation exercises she’d learn in her yoga classes to calm her nerves and get her head on straight. After all, she’s Miranda Priestly, she has an image to uphold.

Feeling the town car come to a complete stop, Miranda opened her eyes and slipped on her La Priestly face. Prada sunglasses and purse on her arm, she slipped out of the car effortlessly with nothing out of place. Ignoring everyone around her, she strolled into the sports bar and did a quick sweep of the restaurant before locating Andrea and her date at a booth on the other side of the bar. Taking a mental deep breath, she sauntered over to Andrea’s booth.

Seeing the two of them sitting at the booth with not much of a conversation or interaction going on made her happy and want to smirk at the foolish boy for thinking he can match up with her Andrea.  _ ‘How dare he, when I, myself, didn’t even match up to Andrea.’ _

“Andrea,” she said in a low pitch voice. 

She watched as Andrea and the foolish boy both looked over at her in surprise. Once Andrea realized that she was really standing there before them, she stood up and silently took her in. Miranda returned the perusal, taking in Andrea’s lovely form in True Religion Halle skinny jeans and red Versace v-neck shirt.

“Uh, excuse me,” her date said. “I’m sorry, but we’re in the middle of a date.”

Before turning to the foolish boy, she noticed Andrea wincing at her date’s misguided act of bravery. ‘ _ Oh foolish boy, I eat people like you everyday.’ _

“Hm yes,” Miranda began, before smirking at him and said, “Thank you for taking my  **wife** out on  **such** a lovely date, but I am here to bring her home.”

Miranda took great pleasure in Andrea’s and her date’s shock look, with their eyes widen and mouth agape.

“W-wife?” Her date stuttered out.

Miranda ignored him and looked over at Andrea. They stared at one another briefly, then without thought, she reached out and brushed a stray strand of hair away from Andrea’s face. “Are you done being mad at me, darling?” Miranda asked softly.  _ ‘Have you forgiven me for Paris?’ _

She watched as various emotions flashed through Andrea’s face. “I… Um…”

“Come, let’s go home. The children are waiting,” Miranda said, while she took Andrea’s hand firmly into her own and steered her towards the exit.

Not wanting to give Andrea a chance to run away once they leave the bar, she tightened her grip on Andrea’s hand as she pulled her towards the waiting town car. Roy opened the back door for them and Miranda motioned for Andrea to slide in first, not willing to take the risk of Andrea fleeing, before following her inside. As Roy drove off, they both sat in silence. Miranda wasn’t sure what she should do now that Andrea was in the car with her. She didn’t have a plan when she had decided to be the one to save her Andrea from the bad date.

Glancing over at Andrea, she can see the silly girl fighting with herself internally. Andrea’s face, like a movie reel, showed confusion, guilt, and… dared she hope… love and affection? With that blip of hope, she decides to take the bulls by its horn and reveal to Andrea how she feels for the silly girl. Hopefully, she doesn’t regret it in the end.

“If you wanted a bad first date Andrea, all you had to do was ask me,” she said, breaking the silence.

Andrea whipped her head around and stared at her in surprise. She couldn’t help but let out a chuckle as Andrea opened and closed her mouth. It seems she really threw the silly girl off her feet once again that evening. In a teasing mood, she winked at Andrea then smirk in challenge.

Andrea shook her head and let out a chuckle of her own. “You’re something else Priestly. God I’ve missed you.”

Miranda’s heart fluttered as she heard Andrea declared aloud that she missed her. They stared at one another again, both using that few seconds to get bearings. Softly clearing her throat, Miranda said, “Well, here I am. What are you going to do to fix the problem?”

She watched at Andrea sat up straighter, transforming from a shy, timid girl, to a strong, confident woman. “By taking you out on a bad first date,” Andrea stated.

Miranda smirked and said, “What makes you think I’d agree to go on this date?’

Andrea returned the smirk with one of her own and responded with, “How can anyone turn down a bad first date?”

“Do you promise it’ll be bad?”

“It’ll be so bad that you’ll agree to a second date.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would tease again and said this was it, BUT there will be a third chapter and it'll be about their bad first date. Stay tune!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somehow, I ended up stretching this first date out... I still have about 2k words left to write, but I thought I'd post the 1.7k I've already written. Enjoy!
> 
> Note: All errors are mine and mine alone.
> 
> Disclaimer: like always, I don't own DWP.

After a week of texting and brief phone calls to settle on a time and date that would work for the both of them, the much anticipated bad first date had finally arrived and Andy is both excited and nervous. It had taken her all week, while discarding many  _ horrible _ ideas, to decide on the perfect  _ bad _ date. She hopes the date she had came up with would stand up to Miranda’s expectation. Andy took a deep breath and straightened out her black blazer before pressing Miranda’s doorbell.

The front door opened swiftly to reveal Miranda Priestly in all her Editor-in-Chief glory. Seeing Miranda in the black striped Balmain suit, her personal favorite outfit for Miranda, Andy gathers that she just got home from work and hasn't had a chance to change for their date yet. Smiling, Andy cheerfully greets her. “Hi Miranda! Are you ready for some gourmet dinner from a bowling alley five star kitchen and exchanging our not so fashionable shoes for those lovely bowling shoes?”

Miranda’s eyes widened in surprise when she saw Andy, as if not expecting her that evening. Andy’s smile dropped from her face, as doubt and apprehension began to seep in. She began pulling her fingers in agitation, while she stood here looking at Miranda, not sure what to say. After standing there for another 10 long seconds, Andy gave Miranda a sad smile, shrugged her shoulder, then said, “Ah well, I should have known it was too good to be true. I’ll just… um… I’m going to go now. Have a good evening Miranda.”

Giving Miranda one last lingering look, she took a step back from the front door and began to turn around to prepare her descend from Miranda’s stoop. Suddenly a hand shot out and grabbed hers, stopping her from taking another step.

“Andrea! I am  _ so  _ sorry!” Miranda began, as she pulled Andy into the townhouse and closed the front door. “I meant to call you to cancel our date earlier, but the afternoon just got away from me. The girls’ father never came to pick them up and when I finally managed to get in contact with him, he tells me he’s gone out of the country with his newest bimbo of a girlfriend. I don’t know why I’m so surprised by this considering he’s always letting the girls down without a second thought. Well, anyways, I now have the girls for the weekend, not that I’m unhappy about it since I love my girls, but Cara is out of town for the weekend to visit family so I have no sitter…”

Andy was amused with a frazzled and rambling Miranda, it’s a look she never thought she’d ever see on Miranda and have decided it’s cute and quite adorable. However, now that she’s taking a closer look, she can see how agitated Miranda is getting. Without a second thought on her sudden, crazy decision, Andy took a few steps closer to Miranda, cupped the older woman’s face with her hands, then leaned in and kissed her. She had only intended to give Miranda a quick, soft kiss to stop the rambling, however, as soon as she felt Miranda’s soft lips upon hers, she was a goner. 

The kiss started off soft and slow, only to be deepened as Miranda let out a moan and grabbed Andy around the shoulders to pull her closer. Andy reacted by deepening the kiss further as she used her hands on Miranda’s hips to push the older woman backwards until her back was against the front door causing Miranda to gasp in surprise. Taking advantage of the gasp, Andy slips her tongue inside Miranda’s warm mouth. They both moaned as their tongue touched and tasted one another for the first time. Andy’s hands moved from Miranda’s hip to pressing against the older woman’s lower back as she slipped her right leg between Miranda’s legs, pressing them even closer together.

The sounds of footsteps running above them brought both ladies back to reality. Andy gave Miranda a last lingering kiss before pulling away. They stood there in the foyer, taking in one another’s flushed faces, as they breathed heavily, trying to catch their breath and calm their racing hearts. Giving Miranda one of her big, bright smiles, Andy brushed Miranda’s hair away from her face. 

“So, what I gathered from your rambling is the girls will be joining us for our date?” Andy said.

“Don’t be silly, Andrea. I do not ramble,” Miranda retorted, while rolling her eyes. “And what I was trying to tell you, before you rudely interrupted me, was that we need to reschedule our date.”

Grinning now, Andy teasingly said. “Oh, it was rambling Priestly and you’re quite adorable while doing it too.”

Rolling her eyes again, Miranda gently pushed Andy away from her. “Keep this up and I’ll change my mind altogether and decide not to grace you with a date at all.”

If Andy didn’t see the slight smirk at the corner of Miranda’s lips and her twinkling blue eyes, she would have thought that Miranda was being serious with her threat. Chuckling, Andy grabs Miranda’s hips and winks at her. 

“You’d be too curious and unsettled if you decide to not go on a date with me, Priestly. After all, I’ve planned the perfect bad first date for us. However...” Andy began, as she dragged out the ‘however’ and tilted her head slightly to the right side. “... since the girls are with you, I’ll have to adjust the perfect date for two to the perfect date for four.”

Miranda’s eyes widened in surprise at Andy’s words. “You want to take my daughters and I on a date?”

“Girls? What do you say? Would you like to go out on a date with me?” Andy, while still smiling and looking at Miranda, asked loudly so Miranda’s twin daughters can hear her from the landing on the second floor.

Excited responses of ‘Yes!’ resounded down to the foyer, causing both women to chuckle. 

“You’ll have to get ready then,” Andy said. “Wear something warm, but comfortable to walk around in.”

“Okay!” The girls hollered out, their loud footsteps can be heard running away from the landing and towards their rooms.

Miranda winced and shook her head at the loud footsteps. “I feel like I’m raising elephants, not little girls.”

Chuckling, Andy gave Miranda a once over and said, “Not that I don’t love you in this outfit Priestly, but you have to change too. Like I mentioned before, casual, warm, and comfortable to walk around in.”

Miranda raised an eyebrow at Andy, then slightly pushed Andy away again so that she could take in her outfit. She took in the black Rag & Bone leather jacket with a white v-neck camisole underneath to her Banana Republic light wash skinny jeans, down to her black Nike Air Max shoes. Miranda hummed as she slowly ran her eyes back up Andy’s body, taking a longer look at the V of her camisole, before coming up to her eyes. 

“Approved?”

“Hmm… It seems you haven’t forgotten everything you’ve learned at  _ Runway _ after all,” Miranda said with a nod of her head. “I’ll be just a minute.”

Grinning, Andy moved out of Miranda’s way so that she could head upstairs to her room to change for the foursome date. Midway up the stairs, Miranda paused at the second floor landing and looked back down at Andy. “Andrea, did you mention bowling alley food and bowling shoes earlier?”

Andy let out a loud laugh at Miranda’s incredulous and scandalized look. 

“Don’t worry Priestly, I’m saving that big treat for the third date. I don’t want to start our first date with something as exciting as bowling,” Andy teased.

“What makes you think I’ll even give you a second date that you’re already planning a third?” Miranda teased back. “You may not even live up to the first date expectation, Andrea. I might even have to call Nigel to save me from having too much fun.”

“Nigel won’t be commissioned tonight, you’ll be too busy  _ not  _ enjoying this date that you’ll forget all about calling him.”

**XXXX**

Seeing Andrea behind the wheel, her daughters in the back, and herself in the passenger seat felt right. Like the missing puzzle piece of her life was finally found and all is complete. She shouldn’t be surprised that Andrea is what was missing, what she had been searching for her whole life. She shouldn’t. After all, Andrea has always been able to accomplish the impossible. Andrea had stood up to La Priestly, tamed the Dragon Lady, melted the Ice Queen’s iceberg of a castle, and stolen Miranda Priestly’s, along with her daughters’, heart. 

Back at the house, when she had walked out of her room, she was able to hear muted voices and soft giggling coming from the stairwell. At the top of the stairs, she caught sight of her daughters and Andrea sitting close together on the bottom steps, talking and laughing. The sight of her three favorite girls getting along and happiness radiating off of them had warmed her icy, cold heart and brought a smile to her face. It helped remind her that having Andrea back in their life was a good choice and she should have done it sooner.

She especially enjoyed Andrea’s gobsmacked reaction when she had come down the stairs and Andrea was able to see the casual outfit she had put together. Tight, black skinny jeans, royal blue cashmere sweater that brings out her blue eyes, and black two inch ankle boots. Andrea’s eyes have always been a window to all of her thoughts and this time it had enabled Miranda to read what Andrea was mentally saying,  _ ‘Holy freaking cow! Oh my god!’ _ The reaction made her feel giddy like a teenage girl, it was, surprisingly. a great feeling. 

“You’re staring,” Andrea said as she glanced over at Miranda briefly before focusing back on the road.

“I’m trying to see if I can read your mind and figure out where you’re taking us.”

Andrea grinned as she glanced back over and gave her a wink. 

“I’m taking you ladies to dinner.”

“Where are we having dinner at Andy?” Cassidy excitedly asked. 

“Yeah! Are we doing anything else after?” Caroline questioned eagerly.

Miranda couldn’t help but let out a chuckle. It seems her daughters are also trying to work Andrea and find out where she’s taking them. However, unlike her daughters, she had more tact and finesse in trying to extract information from the tight lipped brunette. 

“Patience ladies,” Andrea teased, causing all three Priestly women to groan and glare daggers at her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! I hope you all enjoy it.
> 
> Note: All errors are mine and mine alone.
> 
> Disclaimer: like always, I don't own DWP.

Miranda got a little weary when she saw Andrea got on the Brooklyn Bridge and drove towards Brooklyn. She didn’t like not knowing things. It made her uncomfortable and apprehensive, not that she’d reflect that on the outside. She trusted Andrea with everything she’s got and Andrea understands her. During her time at  _ Runway _ , Andrea was able to read Miranda like a book and was able to anticipate what she wanted before she even knew she wanted it. The brunette knows her quirks, her likes and dislikes. She shouldn’t worry, but…

“Breathe, Miranda.” Andrea reached out and gently squeezed her leg in reassurance. “I promise it’ll be better than what you’re imagining in that head of yours.”

Miranda raised an eyebrow and looked over at Andrea. “So confident in your mind reading skills Andrea.”

The brunette shrugged her shoulders and grinned. “I’m the master of the impossible.”

As the car slowed down and Andrea glided into a parking spot at the corner of the street, Miranda took in their surroundings. Around them are two-story row houses, Renaissance Revival styles, if memory serves her right. The area looked safe and has the Upper Manhattan feel to it, but Miranda was a bit perplexed. She didn’t see any restaurants or a possible eatery anywhere within her sight. Not even a convenient store. She turned to Andrea, about to ask, but Andrea turned off the engine and unbuckled her seat belt, urging the girls to do the same.

“Come on, it’s just over there,” Andrea said as she opened her door and got out of the car, before opening the back door for Cassidy. Caroline too excited to wait for Miranda, had opened the door herself and hopped out of the car. Seeing as she was the last one, Miranda let out a sigh, then unbuckled her seat belt and as she was about to open her door, Andrea beat her to it. 

“Milady.” Andrea did a bow with her hand raised for Miranda to take. Miranda rolled her eyes at the brunette’s silly, charming gesture, but put her hand in Andrea’s soft, silky hand anyways. Andrea looked up at her and winked, then kissed the back of her hand before moving her hand to the crook of the brunette’s arm. “Shall we?”

“Yes!” Caroline and Cassidy said.

With the girls on either side of them, Andrea led them towards one of the two-story row houses. For a brief moment, Miranda wondered if Andrea was taking them to her place for dinner, however, instead of leading them up the steps, Andrea led them down a few steps towards a green door. When Andrea opened the door, they were hit with the wonderful smell of tomato sauce, oregano, and garlic. Taken by surprise, Miranda glanced over at Andrea, only to have the brunette winked at her.

“Ciao Andy! Come Stai?” 

Miranda and her daughters watched as a tall, slender, dark haired woman rushed forward and wrapped her lanky arms around their Andrea. Andrea let out a laugh as she returned the woman’s hug and greeted the woman in Italian. Soon, they were both conversing with one another in Italian. The conversation was moving so fast that Miranda was only able to pick up a few keywords.

“Rosa, these are my friends,” Andrea started, while gesturing to her and her daughters. “Miranda and her daughters, Caroline and Cassidy. Ladies, this is Rosa. Her family has owned this restaurant for over 20 years.”

“Ciao Miranda! Caroline e Cassidy. Nice to meet our Andy’s girls.” Rosa greeted them each with a big hug, throwing Miranda off slightly with the unexpected hug. “Come, we will seat you at the family table that way you can enjoy and eat.”

Rosa led them to a big, circular booth in the back corner of the quaint Italian restaurant. Caroline and Cassidy slid in first to sit in the middle, while Andrea took a seat next to Cassidy, leaving the spot next to Caroline for Miranda. While they were walking towards their table, Miranda got the opportunity to take in the restaurant’s environment and decorations. The restaurant itself was tastefully decorated. They had kept it simple and made it feel homey. String tea lights hanging around the room, with fake Italian windows and a couple of trellis covered in vines along the yellow-brown walls reminded Miranda of being outside, under the night sky in Tuscany. 

“You have a beautiful restaurant, Rosa,” Miranda said. 

“Grazie! My mother and father were the ones that started this restaurant when I was sixteen, “ Rosa began. “Mother loves to cook and she loves to feed people.”

“Rosa, Chef Giuliano needs you in the kitchen.”

Rosa glanced over to the person calling for her and nodded her head before turning back to Miranda and her group. “Mi scusi, it looks like my Giuliano is in trouble. Luca will come to take your orders soon.”

“So, what is everyone eating?” Andrea asked.

“Ravioli!” Caroline said.

“I’m getting spaghetti,” Said Cassidy .

Andrea looked over at Miranda, “What about you, beautiful?”

“Recommendations?”

“The Beef Braciole is delicious. The dish that I almost always order is the Chicken Cacciatore. It reminds me of my nonna’s whenever I eat it.”

“I didn’t know you were Italian, Andrea. Sachs is a German surname, is it not?”

“Good evening ladies! My name is Luca and I’ll be your server this evening,” a tall and gangly teenage boy greeted them as he placed glasses of ice water down on their table. “Do you all know what you want to eat or would you like me to take your drink orders first?”

Andrea looked over at Miranda, an eyebrow raised in question. In response, Miranda gave a slight nod of her head causing the brunette to send Miranda a beaming smile. 

“Hi Luca,” Andrea began, “We’ll start with the bruschetta and fried calamari. She’ll have the Beef Braciole, ravioli and spaghetti for the girls, and I’ll have the Chicken Cacciatore. Two glasses of Santi Barbaresco. Girls, what would you like to drink?”

Cassidy and Caroline looked at one another, silently communicating before looking over at Miranda for approval. Miranda raised her eyebrows at the girls, only for them to give her puppy dogs pleading eyes. “Fine, but just one glass, no more.”

Both girls beamed in happiness at their mom before turning to Luca and simultaneously saying, “Sprite, please!” 

“Alright, I’ll go put your orders in and be back with your drinks,” Luca said.

“My nonna is Italian, while my opa is German,” Andrea said as she looked over at Miranda. “Their marriage was quite scandalous back then.”

“Your mom’s side?” Miranda asked.

“Mom is half Polish from my babcia’s side,” Andrea said. “And half Greek from my papou’s side. You add those together and I’m practically a mutt.”

Miranda hummed as she looked at Andrea, taking in her facial features and complexion. Her Andrea looked more Mediterranean with her tanned skin tone, thick wavy hair, lush eyelashes, and soft, kissable lips. Lips that made her tingle earlier that evening. Lips that had her forget everything as soon as it touched her own. Lips that she wants to kiss again and again. Lips that… Light chuckles and giggling brought Miranda back to the present. She looked around the table to see her daughters giggling while looking at her and Andrea chuckling, while giving her a knowing look. Feeling her cheeks heat up, Miranda gave her dinner companions a glare, causing her dinner companions to laugh out loud. 

Shaking her head and trying to contain her smirk, she said, “You all are incorrigible.”

**XXXX**

Miranda can’t recall a time she had enjoyed dinner with anyone other than her daughters. Dinners with her ex-husbands were usually strained or filled with snide remarks from them about her always working and not making time for them. Tonight on the other hand, was comfortable, like they have been doing it for years. It was filled with laughter and light banters. They were all in high spirits and Miranda can picture them doing this at least once a week, if not more. 

They were all back in the car and Andrea once again wouldn’t tell them where they were going next. During dinner, her daughters tried to implement all of their bag of tricks on the brunette but she wouldn’t budge. Instead, the brunette thwarted their attempts by asking the girls about school and their extracurricular activities. Lovely and smart girls that they are, were too easy to distract and forget their mission. Although Miranda is as curious as her two daughters, she found the not knowing excites her and it is quite entertaining to see the three exchange different strategies. 

“Andy, why are we stopping here?” Cassidy asked, while peering out her window.

Miranda, brought back to the present again, looked out the window to see a 7-Eleven in front of them. Confused, she looked over at Andrea to see her turning to look at her daughters.

“I have to pick up some things really quick before we head to our next destination,” Andrea said. She turned back to look at Miranda and searched her eyes briefly before smiling. “I’ll be right back ladies.”

Andrea moved to open her car door and made her way out of the car when she paused her movements and turned back to Miranda. Before she knew it, the soft kissable lips she was thinking about back at the restaurant was once again upon hers. The kiss was brief, so brief that if she didn’t feel the tingling sensation on her lips she wouldn’t believe that it had happened. Bewildered, she opened her eyes to see Andrea giving her a wink then left the car to go into the convenience store, while her daughters are giggling in the backseat.

“Are you girls enjoying yourself this evening?” Miranda asked, in an attempt to distract her daughters.

They both nodded their heads enthusiastically while bouncing up and down in their seats. 

“We’re glad dad forgot about us,” Cassidy said.

“We like spending time with Andy and you more,” Caroline continued.

“Andy is the best, do you think we can do this again?” Cassidy asked.

“Andy won’t go away again would she, mom?” Caroline asked.

Hearing her daughters innocent declaration and voicing their concerns, tugged at Miranda’s heart string. During Andrea’s time as her assistant, Miranda knew that her daughters would sneak down occasionally to talk to the brunette, but she didn’t think anything of it. She didn’t realize how fond her daughters were of Andrea.

“No girls, I won’t let Andrea go away again,” Miranda said with reassuring confidence to her daughters. She would try her very best to have Andrea want to stay with them forever. 

**XXXX**

When Andy pulled into the Coney Island parking entrance, she could hear Caroline’s and Cassidy’s excited exclamations. Glancing over to look at Miranda, she saw the look of horror and incredulity causing her to laugh out loud. Miranda looked over at her and glared. Andy wasn’t sure when it happened, but Miranda’s glare no longer affects her like it used to. Now, the glare only reminds Andy of how cute Miranda was in trying to intimidate her with her La Priestly persona.

“Surprise!” Andy said. 

“Really, Andrea,” Miranda began. “Coney Island of all places?”

“Isn’t it great mom?!” Cassidy exclaimed.

“Yeah! This is awesome! Can we go on the rides?” Caroline said in excitement.

Andy grinned and shrugged her shoulders at Miranda. She knew that Miranda wouldn’t say no to her daughters, not with how excited they are right now. Andy also believed that Miranda would have a good time, even if she’s reticent about it right now. 

“I was going to wait for our fourth or fifth date, once you were comfortable with us dating before taking you and the girls here,” Andy began softly for only Miranda to hear, “But since the girls are with you this weekend, I thought this would keep them from being bummed out.”

Miranda’s eyes soften at Andy’s kind words. “Fine, but only this one time will I be subjected to this. Are we clear Andrea?”

“Yes, Miranda,” Andy cheekily responded.

They all got out of the car, with Caroline and Cassidy bouncing up and down in excitement. Both girls looked about ready to shoot off like a rocket. 

“Okay ladies, before we go have some fun, I have something for you all,” Andy announced as she walked to the back of the car and opened the back gate. Reaching in, she grabbed one of the bags she had come out with from the 7-Eleven store. She turned to see three sets of eyes looking at her in curiosity. Eyes twinkling, Andy pulled out the disposable cameras she had bought. 

“What’s that Andy?” Cassidy asked in confusion.

“These are disposable cameras. I thought it would be fun for each of us to have one and be able to take pictures of whatever we want,” Andy said. “I can get it developed later and we can all get together again and compare them.”

“That’s a great idea, Andrea.”

**XXXX**

Their evening at Coney Island so far is going better than Miranda had imagined. Her daughters and Andrea had fun riding the many stomach churning rides, like the Coney Island Cyclone and the Tickler. She’s not sure how those three can ride those types of rides and still want to eat funnel cakes and deep fried cheesecakes. Just the thought of those mixtures makes Miranda’s stomach queasy. She had sat out during those rides, but was able to capture a handful of pictures of her three favorite girls laughing and enjoying themselves. It was very creative and thoughtful of Andrea to think of capturing their time together with a camera; and it to be a disposable camera so that her daughters can be apart of it was even better. She can’t wait to see what type of pictures everyone had decided to capture.

It had taken a lot of cajoling, but her girls had managed to talk her into riding a few of the other safe rides with them. The B&B Carousel was lovely and it reminded her of the first time she had ridden one when she was a little girl with her dziadek in England. The Brooklyn Flyer was a bit dizzy but she had also enjoyed that ride and wouldn’t mind doing it again. It went high enough that she could see some of the park’s layout, but not high enough that her stomach would churn.

“How about we take a break from the rides and play some of the fair games they have?” Andrea suggested as she points to the many booth games they have set up with all the prizes that can be won.

“Could we play that one?” Caroline asked, pointing to the booth already containing a few people racing each other with water guns.

Andrea looked to Miranda with a challenging look, Miranda never backing down on a challenge raised an eyebrow in return. The four of them stood at the booth to wait for the others to finish and for the seats to become available for them. Andrea took the time to explain to her daughters on how to play the game. It sounded simple enough and Miranda had confidence that she would beat her Andrea in this silly, child’s game.

“Hi! Four players please,” Andrea greeted the man manning the booth and handing over some bills. 

As they all sat down, Andrea taunted them, “Ready to lose ladies?”

“Ha! I’ll be the one winning,” Cassidy exclaimed.

“You’re all going down cause I’m going to win,” Caroline declared.

“Now, now girls,” Miranda reprimanded, “We all know that I’ll be the winner of this silly game.”

The moment the man said the word ‘Go!’ all of their attention was towards their water guns and little rockets. Miranda had to try and block out the taunting and trash talking coming from her daughters and Andrea in order to focus on her rocket.

“Yes! Oh yeah! In the lead baby!” Andrea yelled out.

Hearing this, Cassidy used one of her hands to shove Andrea on her shoulder to slow her down. 

“Hey! No cheating Cass!”

Caroline, deciding to take a page out of her sister’s book, shoved Cassidy in the shoulder to throw her off her game. Soon a game of distractions began between the two, while Andrea tried to focus on her game and avoid Cassidy’s further distractions.

“Congratulations to the lady in blue!” The man announced. “You can pick one of the prizes on the bottom row.”

Smirking at her win, Miranda looked over the many stuffed animals the man had hanging around his booth. Not seeing anything she wanted, she began to tell her daughters to pick one when her eyes landed on the small stuffed blue dragon. “That one.”

Andrea snorted, while her daughters giggled at her selection. She imperiously glared at them as she took the dragon from the man. “Next.” She demanded.

“That looks cool,” Cassidy suggested. Miranda had to roll her eyes at her daughters’ sudden attraction towards shooting games.

“How about something else instead,” Andrea prompted, “That one is a one player game and it can be difficult if you don’t know how to play.”

“Oh,” Cassidy muttered out as her excitement deflated.

Seeing this, Andrea knelt down with one knee to be at eye level with Cassidy. “Hey, what’s wrong?” She asked.

Cassidy looked at Andrea, then back at the booth, hesitant to say whatever it was bothering her out loud.

“Cass, come one You can tell me anything,” Andrea said as she took a hold of Cassidy’s hand and gave her a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

“I want that monkey,” Cassidy answered. They all turned to see what Cassidy was pointing to, to find a big, purple monkey sitting in the back of the booth. Andrea turned back to look at Cassidy and smiled.

“Alright, let’s go get the monkey,” Andrea said as she stood up and held out her hand for Cassidy to take.

“Hello, how many for the big prize?” Andrea asked the man.

“Hello miss. Knock down three large targets for the small prize, three of the ducks for the medium ones, and five of the small flags in the back for the big prize,” The man answered.

“Alright, one round please,” Andrea said, handing over money to the man.

The man took the money and handed over the BB gun with five of the BB ammos. “Good luck.”

Andrea nodded at the man, then readied the gun and focused on the moving targets. Caroline and Cassidy stood on either side of Andrea and cheered her on, while Miranda stood to the side watching and capturing the moment. The first two shots, Andrea missed the flags in the back. The third shot she managed to knock down one, while she missed on the fourth shot and knocked down a second flag with her fifth one. Not giving up so easily, Andrea pulled out some more bills and handed it over to the man.

“The first round was just a warm up,” Andrea said, readying herself for the next five shots.

Andrea did better in the second round, she only missed one of the five shots, earning herself a total of six shots altogether. Cassidy and Caroline both wrapped their arms around Andrea excitedly. “You did it Andy!” They chanted. Andrea handed the man his gun back and wrapped her arms around the girls to return their hugs. She looked over at Miranda, smiling and eyes shining in happiness. Miranda captured the moment with her camera and returned a smile of her own. 

“The monkey is all yours Cass,” Andrea said as she looked over to Cassidy. Cassidy looked up at Andrea and grinned before looking over to her twin in silent communication. Caroline nods her head in agreement to her sisters silent suggestion.

“Could we get two small stuffed animals instead of the big monkey?” Cassidy asked Andrea. Andrea smiled and brushed Cassidy’s hair away from her face before turning to look at the man in question. The man in turn chuckles and nods his head.

“Sure, which two would you like?” The man asked.

“The small purple monkey please!” Cassidy said.

“Caroline?” Andrea asked.

“The green elephant please!” Caroline said.

Stuffed animals in their hands, Caroline and Cassidy ran to Miranda to show her their winnings.

“Well, what shall we do now ladies?” Andrea asked. “More games or more rides?”

“Bumper cars!” Both girls exclaimed loudly.

She must have given a look of horror for Andrea to look at her with twinkling, laughing eyes and barely contained amusement.

“How about the Ferris Wheel? It’s dark enough now that we can probably enjoy the beautiful view of the New York skyline,” Andrea gently suggested.

“Okay!” Both girls said.

Leading the pack, the girls held hands and skipped along in front of them towards the Wonder Wheel. Always with a smile pasted on her face, Andrea glanced over at Miranda while they followed the girls. “Worse night of your life?” 

“Absolute worse,” Miranda said as she winked at Andrea.

END


End file.
